Community-university initiatives

Staff, students and faculty from across Concordia’s departments engage with the community in diverse and innovative ways. Scroll through the list below to find out more about what projects are underway and how you can get involved.

5 Days for the Homeless
Every March, Concordia students and alumni spend 5 days and nights on the street to raise awareness and funds to support the work of local organization, Dans la Rue.

AIESEC ConcordiaAIESEC Concordia, originally an acronym for Association Internationale des Étudiants en Sciences Économiques et Commerciales, is part of a global youth organization that develops leadership capabilities by facilitating international placements with both profit and non-profit organizations.

Alternative Spring BreakEvery February, Alternative Spring Break (ASB) offers students the opportunity to participate in a week-long service-learning experience in either a local or non-local setting. Students learn about different cultures, communities, and social issues while working in a hands-on manner with service organizations.

Amnesty International ConcordiaAmnesty International is a global movement of 2.8 million supporters, members and activists in more than 150 countries and territories who campaign to end grave abuses of human rights. The Concordia chapter works on bringing awareness to these causes.

Art MattersHeld annually during the month of March, Art Matters is a student-run festival that celebrates the vitality of the multidisciplinary artistic community. The festival promotes the development of emerging talent by creating connections to Montreal’s creative institutions, galleries and artist run centres. After more than a decade of effort from producers, curators, artists and interns, Art Matters has become the largest festival of its kind.

Burrito Project MontrealThe Montreal chapter of The Burrito Project is a grassroots initiative to build community and feed those who are hungry and/or living in the streets. Every Sunday, volunteers make vegan burritos and go out into the streets of Montreal to deliver them by bike or on foot.

CASA CaresCASA Cares is the non-profit segment of the Commerce and Administration Student Association (CASA) at Concordia’s John Molson School of Business. It promotes social awareness and responsibility among students and regularly organizes fundraisers benefitting local non-profits and charities.

Centre for Gender AdvocacyThe Centre for Gender Advocacy is an independent, student-funded organization, mandated to promoting gender equality and empowerment particularly as it relates to marginalized communities. This mandate is achieved through on-going programming, campaigns, resources, services, and advocacy.

Centre for Human Relations and Community StudiesThe Centre for Human Relations and Community Studies (CHRCS) is a community of practitioners, researchers, community members, students, and other learners dedicated to improving the quality of life in human systems.The Centre provides faculty and students a necessary vehicle to carry on the working relationship with the community by providing learning experiences, training, consulting, research and publishing services to groups, organizations and individuals.

Centre for Oral History and Digital StorytellingThe Centre for Oral History and Digital Storytelling (COHDS) serves aa point of convergence for collaborative digital historical research, teaching, and publishing among faculty and students at Concordia, as well as members of local, national and international communities.

Centre for the Arts in Human DevelopmentThe Centre for the Arts in Human Development (CAHD) is a therapeutic, research, and clinical training centre, offering a unique program of creative arts therapies for people with various types of developmental disabilities. Its public education mandate about disabilities and the arts involves original theatre productions, open houses and educational community-based projects.

Centre for the Study of Learning and PerformanceThe Centre for the Study of Learning and Performance (CSLP) is a multi-institutional research centre. It aims to develop evidenced-based tools and strategies that positively impact prekindergarten to secondary education, postsecondary education, corporations and industry, health and social services and the NGO/community sector.

CHNGR
Funded through the J.W. McConnell Foundation’s RECODE program, CHNGR aims to create and support projects that encourage collective and social entrepreneurship, as well as innovation.

Cinema Politica ConcordiaFounded at Concordia, Cinema Politica is is a media arts, non-profit network of community and campus locals that screen independent political film and video by Canadian and international artists throughout Canada and abroad. Each semester, programming is focused on social justice, environmental and cultural identity issues, and all screenings aim to bridge political independent filmmaking, local activism and civic education and engagement.

City Farm SchoolThe City Farm School is an initiative to develop partnerships and expertise in urban agriculture on the island of Montreal. Our aim is to promote a cultural shift towards more resilient communities able to meet the challenges posed by climate change by focusing on local food autonomy. Bringing the farm internship to the city!

CJLO RadioCJLO 1690 AM is Concordia’s campus-community radio station and the only English-language radio station in Montreal that offers independent and underground music programming. CJLO also hosts events throughout the city to help promote and support the community and musicians.

Colours of ConcordiaColours of Concordia is a group comprised of students, faculty, staff and alumni that aims to promote projects that help bring a greater understanding between cultures. The Colours of Concordia Cultural Initiative Fund supports initiatives that further the organization's goal.

Community-University Research ExchangeThe Community-University Research Exchange (CURE) broadens the kind of academic work available to students and gives community organizations, specifically those which experience social and economic marginalization, access to the knowledge and resources circulating in the academic sphere. Through CURE, students may volunteer to do socially-relevant academic research for the benefit of local non-profit organizations.

CEED: Community, Empowerment, Education, Development
Community, Empowerment, Education, Development (CEED) was established on the belief that engagement in community development programs can successfully assist with issues relating to the various dimensions of underdevelopment. Since its induction, CEED has continuously provided individuals with the opportunity to volunteer in Gulu, Uganda, while simultaneously building partnerships with various community organizations.

Concordia GreenhouseThe Concordia Greenhouse is an all-organic space geared towards education and research into urban sustainability, community building and food security open to students as well as community members. The greenhouse provides an environment for workshops, film screenings, research projects and community events, and is a springboard for spreading innovative solutions through popular education initiatives.

Concordia International Community Outreach Program (iCOP)iCOP’s goal is to create concrete opportunities for students to become informed, engaged and actively involved in international development. By focusing on economic, social and environmental issues, iCOP aims to enable students to put words into actions so that they may become global citizens and social leaders.

Concordia HIV/AIDS ProjectThe Concordia HIV/AIDS Project was founded in 1993 and has now grown into four interrelated programs and initiatives including the HIV/AIDS Community Lecture Series, Concordia Community HIV/AIDS Courses, and HIV/AIDS Community Internships.

Concordia University Television (CUTV)Established in 1969, CUTV is Concordia's campus-community television station that gives a voice to Montreal's underrepresented communities. It creates and produces video, and broadcasts live over the internet.

David O'Brien Centre for Sustainable EnterpriseThe mission of the David O’Brien Centre for Sustainable Enterprise (DOCSE) is to be the leader in developing business practices that support corporate social responsibility, environmental health and safety environmental management, community, and greening activities in a holistic and systemic way. It explores issues related to sustainable enterprise, shapes curriculum development, and trains the next generation of researchers and business leaders.

Engineers Without BordersEngineers Without Borders (EWB) Concordia is a non-profit organization, supported by professional engineers, students, and volunteers in Canada and abroad. EWB works with local organizations, offering experience and knowledge to assist development. Its main areas of focus are education, communication, and innovation.

Frontier CollegeFrontier College at Concordia organizes reading circles, homework clubs and one-on one tutoring in collaboration with community partners in Little Burgundy, and the NDG-CDN area. Volunteers work to directly improve literacy levels among children and adult learners and can also take part in management and administrative tasks within an on-campus committee.

Humanitarian Awareness of Concordia UniversityHumanitarian Awareness Concordia University's (HACU) aims to educate young people about global poverty and international development. It strives to initiate and support humanitarian relief efforts by spreading awareness on various human rights issues and to provide students with experiential learning opportunities.

Institute for Community Entrepreneurship and DevelopmentThe Institute for Community Entrepreneurship and Development (ICED) provides opportunities for members of Aboriginal, Black, ethnic and immigrant communities to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to improve their situation as well as the economic and social conditions in their communities. ICED achieves its mission by engaging key representatives and organizations within these communities, conducting research and providing managerial tools and training that will facilitate social and economic development.

Journalists for Human RightsThe goal of Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) is to make everyone in the world fully aware of their rights. By mobilizing the media to spread human rights awareness, JHR informs people about their rights, empowering marginalized people to stand up, speak out, and protect themselves.

La Ruche d'ArtLa Ruche d'Art is a free community art studio and science shop open to the general public. Its mission is to make art more accessible, strengthen links between community members and celebrate diversity, through dialogue, art making and gardening.
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Le Frigo VertLe Frigo Vert is a cooperative and store that sells organic bulk and pre-packaged food, alternative health products, and environmentally-thoughtful cleaning supplies. It strives to make nutritious, affordable food accessible along with recipes and information about medicinal herbs. The store serves the student population as well as the community at large.

Let’s Talk ScienceLet's Talk Science is an award-winning, national, charitable, science outreach organization. They create and deliver science learning programs and services that turn children and youth on to science, keep them engaged in learning, and develop their potential to become 21stcentury citizens, innovators and stewards.

LIVE CentreThe LIVE Volunteer Resource Centre is a "one-stop shop" for information about volunteering, both within and outside of Concordia. Acting as a liaison service, the Centre bridges community organizations, student groups and departments who seek to recruit volunteers within the Concordia community.

Living KnowledgeCombining a comprehensive research project with guest speakers, workshops, and celebratory events, the Living Knowledge initiative seeks to provide both the quantitative data and campus-community mobilization needed to advance community engaged scholarship at Concordia.

MBA Community Service InitiativeThe MBA Community Service Initiative (CSI) seeks to develop and coordinate opportunities for students, faculty and staff, and community agencies to collaborate and build partnerships aimed at learning from each other while working together for the benefit of society. The MBA CSI links experiential learning with service to the community through Community Engaged Scholarship, Community Services and Operations.

Mobile Media LabThe Mobile Media Lab engages in interdisciplinary research within the field of mobility studies. Interdisciplinary by nature, their research and research-creation projects take movement as a central conceptual tool for engaging the technologies, cultural practices and geographic contingencies of everyday life.

Montreal Institute For Genocide and Human Rights StudiesThe Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies (MIGS) is recognized internationally as Canada's preeminent centre for the study of genocide and crimes against humanity. MIGS strives to establish and manage major research programs focused on the prevention and prosecution of genocide and other crimes against humanity.

People’s PotatoThe People's Potato is a collectively-run soup kitchen that offers vegan meals to students and community members on a by-donation basis.They are committed to educating about healthy cooking and food politics and to broader goals of social and environmental justice.

QPIRG ConcordiaThe Quebec Public Interest Research Group (QPIRG) at Concordia is a resource centre for student and community research. It supports grassroots activism around diverse social and environmental issues through a wide variety of working groups. QPIRG seeks to establish campus-community links and inspire social change through inclusive and non-hierarchical engagement.

The bridge between Concordia University and Montreal-area schools, RacineCarrée brings together university and primary school students to design and implement real-world solutions for existing needs in the local community.

Sense LabThe Sense Lab is composed of artists, academics, researchers, dancers, writers who work together to explore the active passage between research and creation. It holds monthly reading groups as well as a bi-monthly speaker-series entitled Bodies-Bits///Corps-Données which is a platform for the exploration of work in progress both local and international.

Le/The Sensoriumle/the Sensorium presents participatory public art events with the goal of creating community through shared affective-sensorial experiences. Featuring a menu of seasonal artists, le/the Sensorium excites, surprises and challenges the senses of tourists and locals of Montreal, Canada.

Sexual Assault Resource CentreThe Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC) works with survivors of sexual violence, connecting them to community resources. SARC also sits on the Table de concertation sur les agressions à caractère sexuel de Montreal and collaborates with community organizations working in this area on outreach events, projects, information sharing and best practices.

Sustainable ConcordiaSustainable Concordia is a nexus that engages students, staff, faculty, and administrators to work together in non-hierarchical, consensus based decision-making processes to address issues of sustainable development on campus. It has a number of working groups and serves as a springboard for sustainable initiatives around campus.

Sustainable Internship ProgramThe Sustainable Internship Program is a collaborative program developed by the David O’Brien Centre for Sustainable Enterprise and the John Molson School of Business (JMSB) Career Management Services (CMS). It gives undergraduate and graduate students at JMSB the opportunity to gain valuable and related experience within the domain of sustainability. Internship positions offer exposure to practices related to sustainability, CSR, ethics, diversity, social economy, socio-economic development and other issues.

The Neighbourhood Theatre projectThe Neighourhood Theatre (TNT) project draws inspiration from the work of oral historians, activists, and artists from various disciplines who are engaged in social innovation. It creates fun, intimate, locally based theatre and web-based digital stories in collaboration with neighbourhood residents, businesses, groups, and social service organizations in Montreal. Venues include libraries, coffee shops, art galleries, yoga studios, or other found spaces.

University of the Streets The University of the Streets Café organizes public conversations in cafés and community spaces across Montreal. The program is free and open to participants of all ages, all backgrounds, and all levels of education. Without grades or diplomas, the University of the Streets Café reinvents the idea of the ‘university’ by creating spaces for lifelong learning, critical thinking, knowledge-building and community engagement.

Women in EngineeringWomen in Engineering strives to increase the participation of women in the field of engineering by promoting engineering to women and girls of all ages, teaching elementary school Engineering Enrichment classes and visiting local high schools and CEGEPs to inspire girls to grow up to be engineers!